During his meeting on Saturday with Chinese State Councillor Wang Yi, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned China that an incident, such as the one involving the spy balloon, “must never happen again.”
Blinken’s Comments
Talking about the meeting in an interview for CBS’ “Face the Nation,” Blinken said that he had “made very clear” to Wang that China sending a surveillance balloon over the US was a “violation of [the US’] sovereignty, in violation of international law” and “must never happen again.”
State Department spokesperson Ned Price said that, in the first high-level meeting since the US’ shooting down of China’s high-altitude surveillance balloon two weeks ago, Blinken told Wang that China’s “high-altitude surveillance balloon program — which has intruded into the airspace of over 40 countries across five continents — has been exposed to the world.”
Just met with the PRC’s top diplomat, Wang Yi. I condemned the incursion of the PRC surveillance balloon and stressed it must never happen again. I warned China against providing materiel support to Russia. I also emphasized the importance of keeping open lines of communication.
— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) February 18, 2023
The US “will compete and will unapologetically stand up for [its] values and interests,” Price said, adding, however, that Washington does “not want conflict” with Beijing. Blinken asserted that the US is “not looking for a new Cold War,” Price said.
Moreover, Blinken “underscored the importance of maintaining diplomatic dialogue and open lines of communication at all times.”
Wang’s Comments
If the US side continues to fuss over, dramatize and escalate the unintended and isolated incident, it should not expect the Chinese side to flinch. The US side should be prepared to bear all consequence arising from an escalation.
— Hua Chunying 华春莹 (@SpokespersonCHN) February 19, 2023
According to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Wang conveyed China’s “strong position” on the incident and urged the US to “change course,” and “acknowledge and resolve the damage its abuse of force has done” to bilateral relations.
Earlier this month, Blinken had cancelled his visit to Beijing after reports of the spy balloon emerged in the media. The issue has become a major bone of contention between the two superpowers.